Most conventional voice mail systems utilize a DTMF-controlled telephony application to access the system and retrieve stored messages. In particular, a voice mail subscriber needs to enter his account number (and perhaps a password) to gain access to the system (where the subscriber's telephone number may be used as the account number). Various DTMF tones are then used to progress through the voice mail menu (e.g., using a “#” sign to retrieve new messages, a “1” to delete messages, a “2” to skip to the next message, etc.), where different systems may use different DTMF tones to control the message retrieval process. In general, there exist a variety of DTMF-controlled systems, such as interactive banking systems, hotel reservation systems, etc., where one maneuvers through different levels of menus by entering DTMF tones on a telephone keypad.
Many individuals now use relatively small cell phones that include the DTMF keypad on the same structure as the transmitter (microphone) and receiver (speaker). When using such a cell phone to access a DTMF-controlled system, the phone must constantly be moved between an individual's line-of-sight (to enter the proper DTMF tones) and his ear (to listen to messages or commands from the voice mail system). In another common scenario, many individuals now retrieve voice mail messages while traveling in their cars. While many car phones today have a “hands-free” option for dialing outbound calls (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,805,672), once the call has been established, the person traveling in the car still needs to use the keypad on the car phone to further access different telecommunications-based services and systems.
Thus, a need remains in the art for an arrangement capable of providing “hands-free” access to and progress through any DTMF-controlled telecommunications system, particularly when accessing such a system with a device such as a cell phone.